All Kinds of Loveliness.

I’ve written on countless occasions about all the opportunities blogging brings. As well as making some very firm friendships within the blogosphere, I’ve also met and corresponded with a lot of business women, many of whom are busy mothers and all of whom have had a vision and determination to bring their product to market.

Katarina Stetz has a dual degree in chemical engineering and finance. During her maternity leave she had the idea of creating personalised skincare so she founded Ninni. The custom blend is done in a series of steps with a choice of “My Day,” (anti-oxidants and CoQ10) or “My Night,” (hyaluronic acid and peptides), followed by a choice of two scents (or an unscented version). I chose lemon and rosemary as a day cream and lavender and chamomile as a night cream. I have been using them for about two months now and although I’m not a beauty blogger or an expert on skincare, I can say that they are beautiful creams and leave my skin feeling soft and smooth. I love lavender in anything so I find the night cream not only smoothes my skin, but soothes my soul before bed.

In the interests of equality, it seems only fair that I mention a duo of male entrepeneurs. Rene Seppeur, along with his university friend Matthias Groo, designed the Space Wallet when realising that a significant proportion of men, removed their bulky wallet from their back pocket when sitting down. These tiny wallets are little bigger than a credit card but are ideal for a night out when a card and a few notes is all that’s needed. There is a small change compartment too. I have already used mine when space is a premium in a clutch bag and I will be packing it to use on holiday too. You can see just how small it is in relation to my sunglasses and ring. The wallets are made in Germany, come in a wide variety of colours and styles and international shipping is free.

As well as small brands, it’s lovely getting the opportunity to try things from established brands too. This is the Leighton Denny Tribal Fever nail polish collection and the Must Have Mani Makeover Kit which includes a glass nail file, a buffer and a divine hand cream. The colours are richly pigmented and very vibrant and my nails remained chip-free for several days, which is most unusual for me! I love every single colour and know these will serve me throughout the summer months.

This bracelet was sent to me from the lovely team at Aspire Style from their new personalised jewellery selection. This is a rose gold friendship bracelet and I have the names of my children engraved on it, one on each side of the heart. It’s so pretty and would be a beautiful gift for women of all ages. This is something that sits beautifully alongside the rest of my jewellery and I have worn it every day since it arrived.

I hope this will lead you to some new websites and to some new products, so that between us we can support small(er) businesses when we can.

Liz I love how you always support British brands and the smaller ones too, I'm so glad you brought Toolally to my attention, their designs are AMAZING!! I think I could actually go kinda crazy and spend a fortune on their site…!

They are fabulous designs aren't they. They're made very locally to me here in Skipton so it's even more exciting! I love supporting the smaller brands and its always nice to have something new or different xxx